Carpe Diem
by blackrose113
Summary: Everyone has a little voice in the back of their head. The voice that calls for the ‘whole’ instead of ‘nonfat’ milk. The part that wants to take a chance and live with no regrets. So…what if Sophie had listened to hers more often?


Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue (for the WHOLE STORY!)

Summary: Everyone has a little voice in the back of their head. The voice that calls for the 'whole' instead of 'non-fat' milk. The part that wants to take a chance and live with no regrets. So…what if Sophie had listened to hers more often?

**Carpe Diem: Chapter 1**

Sewing was such back-breaking work. Well, neck-breaking, to be precise. Sophie soon found that the crick in her neck was too much to bear so after putting back the hats and the sewing kit neatly, she donned her own hat and went out the door, locking it behind her. She was glad that Fanny had closed up early to celebrate with the rest of the city.

Sophie walked meekly on the streets, keeping to the alleyways to avoid the crowds and ignoring the part of her that wanted desperately to join the festivities and dance and sing and cheer. Lost in an internal debate over whether or not to go to the town square and party like everyone else, Sophie didn't notice the chatter and raucous laughter of two slightly inebriated soldiers in a conjoining alleyway.

She gasped in surprise when a gruff voice broke her away from her thoughts and she gripped the skirts of her dress tightly. Sweat beaded her brow and she could feel the blood pounding in her ears.

"Hey, you. Little mouse. Do you need help?" one soldier asked, grinning in what he no doubt thought was an attractive manner but actually came out as a drunken gape.

"N-no, thank you. I'm fine on my own."

Insider her own head, there was another voice yelling at her to retaliate. _'You're stuttering! This guy's trying to do god knows what and you're stuttering! Have some backbone girl!'_

"Little mouse, would you like to get some tea with us?"

'_No way. It looks as if you could cut back on it too, from the color of your teeth.'_

"I'm a b-bit busy. Please, sir, if you would let me by—"

The man clasped his rough hands around her arm and tried coaxing her away from her path, "C'mon. It's just a little tea and I'm sure we could have a little fun also, little mouse."

Sophie felt her face grow hot in shame and anger at the implications of his words and she tried to pull away, "Let go!"

"Hah! She's even cuter when she's ang—"

Sophie cut the guard off when she stomped on his toe and threw her open hand at the second guard, smacking him in the face with as much strength as she could muster.

"Get back here you little—"

Once again the guard was cut off when his arm was twisted back and he was slammed against the wall by some invisible force.

"There you are honey! I was looking all over for you!" A blonde haired man had appeared behind Sophie and slung an arm around her shoulder, completely ignoring both guards.

The second guard reached for his pistol when he realized that the man was probably the cause of his friend being thrown into the wall, only to find that his body wasn't obeying his commands. His arms were glued to his sides and his legs were moving of their own accord. "Wha-what!"

Both guards marched away stiffly as the newcomer flicked his finger to and fro and they were soon back at their posts and very much embarrassed. The blonde man tried to steer Sophie forward and away from the guards' posts, but her feet were planted firmly in the ground…

'_Yeah! That's right! Show that chauvinistic pig what you're made of! Idiot, thinking you couldn't handle it yourself!'_

…until she found them being forcefully pulled up into awkward steps that brought her the direction the man wanted.

"Where are you going? I'll be your escort."

Anger lighting her eyes, Sophie grabbed onto the water pipe leading down from the gutter of the apartment they were passing and held on tightly, refusing to move her feet even though they tried walking away. She ignored his question and comment and glared defiantly at him.

'_Go away, pansy! Even I don't have that shade of pink in my closet!'_

The man turned, his blonde hair swishing to reveal dangling emerald earrings, and he flashed his most charming, knee-weakening, drool-inducing smile. Sophie nearly melted from the heat traveling to her face but the angry yelling in her head kept her gripping tightly onto the pipe.

With an exasperated sigh, the man closed his eyes and leaned in, quickly whispering, "I'm being followed. Just go along with this and act normal. I will bring you wherever you wish."

When Sophie felt chills down her spine and a sudden rush of wind from behind her, she realized that if this man was telling the truth. Whatever was following him probably wasn't too pleasant, and she'd rather not be seen as an obstacle stopping anyone or anything from getting to the man. Squaring her shoulders, she walked forward and soon felt the woodenness of her legs fade.

Unfortunately, Sophie found no time to enjoy the new feeling in her legs as black blobs emerged from the buildings around them, and both she and her "escort's" pace quickened. She was sure the man could hear her heart beating a tattoo on her ribcage and she cursed her lack of bravery.

"Sorry I got you involved."

Sophie felt her eye twitch. She was involved? She was _involved?_ "Just what exactly am I involved in?" she hissed menacingly, glaring at the undeniably handsome man beside her. He quickly wrapped his arm around her waist and she suddenly felt her feet pulled from the solid feel of pebbled roads and replaced by nothing but air.

When the man didn't answer her, she felt her eye twitch again.

"Listen, I appreciate you trying to help me back there, but _what have you gotten me into!_"

He still didn't answer.

Sophie felt her face grow red as she surrendered completely to the part of herself that she usually kept locked away and she didn't even notice that her legs began to move as if walking on the air.

"You know, as if getting me _'involved'_ in whatever it is _you're_ involved in and taking me away from the safety of the ground wasn't bad enough, it's undeniably _rude_ for you to ignore me like this!"

-0-

Howl sighed in annoyance. Figures that the first time he went for the seemingly shy, nice girl, she turned out to be a harpy.

'_Well…she's no Witch of the Waste…'_

He just sighed again and shook his head, preferring not to go into the long story about the Witch of the Waste and his dumb mistake of approaching her despite all the rumors he had heard. Calcifer had never let him forget it the whole four years he had been on the run. Well, he had been an idiot of twenty one, and he had probably been drunk as well, considering how much the took advantage of finally being able to drink legally. It _had_ been a pretty fuzzy year, now that he thought about it…

"Nothing. Nevermind. Where were you headed, anyways? I can drop you off."

The girl huffed and even with the headache she had caused him, he couldn't help but grin at the cute face she was making. "Cesari's."

"Oh really? Going to stuff yourself with pastries?" Howl nearly winced at his words. She had been right calling him rude, but if those things he did before didn't convince her, his newest statement did. It was meant to come out as a playful joke—just something to break awkward (and angry) air surrounding them.

The girl, however, remained quiet as the mouse the soldiers had called her before and she grabbed onto the balcony pole as soon as it was within reach. He nearly sweatdropped as she scrambled to get onto the railing and away from him as quickly as possible and Howl scratched his head in slight embarrassment.

"Listen, I'll draw them away and as soon as the coast is clear you ca—OOF!"

-0-

'_Gah! You'd better get him for that or else I'll never leave you alone! That stupid, girly idiot!'_

Sophie narrowed her eyes dangerously and refused to speak for the rest of the flight, relief overcoming her when she stepped onto the railing of Cesari's and clung onto the pole of the balcony. She nearly cackled at what she was going to do next and she didn't even bother to pay attention to what he was saying, only measuring the distance she would have to cross in order to teach that idiotic blonde a lesson.

She drew her leg back and then kicked him in the stomach, smirking in triumph when the man was cut off in the middle of his pointless sentence and was forced to float away, his stupid pink jacket billowing out behind him.

"GOOD RIDDANCE!" she yelled before stomping away, hoping that a few free cookies from her sister's counter would lighten her mood.

-0-

Howl stepped back into his _Jenkins's Shop_ and slammed the door behind him. Markl came running down from his room, tripping on a few books as he came to greet his master.

"Master Howl! You're ba—what happened?"

Howl had an angry scowl on his face and he threw off his jacket, letting it land on a pile of old books and scrolls. His once pristine, white shirt now had a small, dark shoeprint on it and there was some suspicious black and white goo on his shirt…

Markl quickly turned away and stuffed his fist into his mouth to keep from laughing. Either his fangirls finally got to him or—

"Jeez, Howl. Who on earth kicked you?"

"Hot water to my bath!"

"And is that bird p—"

"I _SAID_ HOT WATER!"

-0-

**a/n:** Not very good. I just saw the movie and it was SO ROMANTIC! Please leave some constructive criticism. I know this chapter isn't very good…


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